Why is the FIA chief under investigation for interference?

FIA president, Mohammed Ben Sulayem, is reportedly under investigation for allegedly interfering over the result of a Formula 1 race last season.

According to the BBC, Ben Sulayem is alleged to have intervened with the decision to overturn a penalty that had previously been handed out to Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso at the 2023 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

It is understood that a report by an FIA compliance officer sent to its ethics committee claims that Ben Sulayem called Sheikh Abdullah bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa – the FIA’s vice-president for sport for the Middle East and North Africa, who was in Saudi Arabia at the time of the race – stating that Alonso’s penalty should be overturned.

Ben Sulayem and the FIA have not yet responded to the allegations, while it is expected that the ethics committee will issue a report in four to six weeks .

Why was Fernando Alonso given a penalty?

Alonso had initially been given a five-second penalty for his car being partially outside of his starting box for lights out.

As the Spaniard came into the pits during the race to serve his penalty, Aston mechanics were not to begin work on his car until the five seconds had passed.

Yet a rear jack appeared to make contact with the car before the entire time had elapsed and the penalty was subsequently upgraded to 10 seconds.

The penalty however was overturned at the time due to ambiguities in the rules as to whether a jack making contact with the car actually constituted as work being done.

After the race, the rules were tightened to clarify that “touching the car or driver by hand or tools or equipment will all constitute working.”

Should that wording have been in place prior to the race, there is no doubt that Alonso’s penalty would have been upheld.

This would have seen Mercedes driver George Russell promoted up into the podium places instead of Alonso, who finished behind Red Bull duo Sergio Perez and Max Verstappen in first and second respectively.

F1 returns this Saturday in Saudi Arabia – here is all you need to know ahead of lights out.